Book Lover's Vocabulary.

Words all book lovers shall know.

Here I am, with a new post. Sorry for the delay. I was busy in searching, finding and buying new books. I never planned on writing “book-lover’s vocabulary”, but as soon as I started writing about things all book lovers will understand, a thought came into mind, why not write all the words that are related to a book lover. So here it is, enjoy.

 Tsundoku (v): A Japanese word, the act of leaving a book unread after buying it.

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 Bibliobuli (n): Those people who read just too much.

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Bookarazzi (n): A book lover who takes pictures of the books he reads and posts them online.

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Book-bosomed: A person who carries a book with him all the time.

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Abibliophobia: Fear of running out of material to read.

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Bibliosoph: A person who is knowledgeable of books.

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Bibiliolater: A person who is passionately enthusiastic about books.

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Bibliotaph: A person who hoards books to protect them from the biblioklepts.

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Biblioklepts: A person who steals books, a book thief.

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Bibliognost: A person who knows books or bibliography.

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Ballycumber: One of the six half-read books in your bed.

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Bibliopole: A person who buys books and sells books (the rare ones).

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Scripturient: Someone who has a passion for writing.

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Princeps: First edition of books.

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Omnilegent: Reading or having read everything.

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Logophile: A lover of words.

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Librocubicularist: A person who reads in bed.

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Libricide: Killing or destruction of books.

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Incunabula: Books printed prior to 1501.

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Epeolatry: Worshiping words.

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Cinereaders: Who refuses to watch a movie without having read the source book. They read a lot and think that movies can't do the justice.

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Damstain: Stain on cover or pages after having been exposed to water.

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Page-a-vu: Reading a book, that you are sure, you have never read before, yet it feels very familiar.

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Readgret: Reading a book and then feeling sad that you should have read this book years ago.

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Scrollmate: Reader’s deep connection with the author.

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Shelfrighteous: A person who feels himself superior/ proud because of his book-shelf.

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Readultery: (alert; this one made me laugh so hard), Being unfaithful to a book by reading another at the same time. Cheating on a book with another book.

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I am sure you will love this post. Please comment if it added some words to your vocabulary. 

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Ishq hy Aagahz sy Anjam Talak.

Hi all

I always wanted to write something in Urdu, so here is an Urdu post.

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How to study smart, not hard.

How to study smart, not hard.

Hi all..................................!

All of you must have seen so many boring articles under this title “How to study smart, not hard” (not all of them were boring, but still). And you always wanted to know what the most effective way is to study but didn’t get the right answer maybe (so, I suppose you are still wondering). You must be thinking why I am going to write another boring article under this title. Listen, dear reader, I am no expert, so I am going to write what I have learnt from my personal experience. So, I guess my experience will help you in some or other way.

What does smart study mean, studying on your smartphone? No. Let’s take the example of two students. One of them is a book worm and studied for the whole academic year yet failed. The other one is careless and he somehow managed to study the last night before exams and got an A+. Ouch!! How did this happen?

The book worm did not use the right way to store information in his brain, the later mentioned did and passed with flying colors.

Well, the method that is used worldwide to “brain-store information” is rote-learning. Rote-learning is like your parrot Charlie trying to copy you, but he does not understand a word you speak. Same is the case with you. Don’t mind but try to recall the essay that you had rote-learnt in your high school and you got an A for it in the exams. Now think of all the color names that you learnt at pre-school. You still remember almost all those things that you learnt at pre-school.

I am not saying that your teachers didn’t teach you perfectly at you high school, or your ability to acquire knowledge reduced by the time you reached there. You are the same person; the thing is that two very different techniques were used at both of the times.

How?

Our brain is like a bookshelf (I am a book lover, what else type of example do you expect from me? haha) The thing is as your book shelf needs to be arranged every now and then, or else you would get lost in the pile of books trying to get your desired book. Same is the case with your brain and all the information stored in it.

I agree rote learning works for most of the students, but it never worked for me. Rote- learning may help you get an A and at the end of the day, a degree with an awesome CGPA. But the problem is, after one or two months of the exams, you won’t be able to remember a word that became the reason for your A grade.

The main objective behind getting the degree was to learn something that may help you in your future life, which was not accomplished.

The negative point for rote-learning is that it takes a lot of time. And if you are a student of English literature for instance and you have a lot of reading to do in a very short span of time, it is not going to work.

Try to use the Brain’s language

Your brain works like a drive which has a vast storage space, but if you don’t store information in a correct way, everything will be messed up.

The technique of Mnemonics is the best to learn things faster and have them stored in your brain for a longer period. Mnemonics is a device which aids your memory to learn things in a fun way.

Don’t worry because of its scientific looking name, it is a pretty simple technique. Remember, when you were not able to memorize which month of the year contains 31, 30 or 29 days? And your teacher told you to knuckle memorize the names of all twelve months. Every knuckle presented 31 days and all months with less than 30 days lied between the knuckles.

An alphabet song is used to help child learn alphabets.

“Richard of York Gave Battle In Vain”, the first letter of each word in the fore-mentioned sentence is an initial for a color; every color that is found in the rainbow. Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, Violet.

These were some of the examples of mnemonics and you can always make your own mnemonic’s device to memorize something faster.

Imagination is one’s power

Once Albert Einstein said, “Imagination is more important than knowledge”.

You must be thinking Why?

He answered your “why” too.

Because “Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world”.

Imagination is your power because everything you read forms a vivid image in your brain. Yet again let me criticize rote-learning as it does not create any illustrations in your brain because you are just repeating words and your brain is wandering somewhere else.

source: giphy.com

So, whenever you read something, always try to see and listen to what your brain has to offer you. Even if there is not a story, make it and visualize it in your head. Trust me you are not going to forget it in a short time.

Be logical

One of my students said to me after Bachelor of Arts’ result was announced, “I wrote a lot in my English’s paper and stapled so many sheets, yet I got less marks”.

This is the mistake that so many students make. Dear students, examiner is not going to count your clipped sheets to give you high marks.

You don’t have any need to torture yourself to fill up more and more sheets. Write what have been asked by the examiner, you don’t need to tell each and everything that you have studied throughout your academic year.  

Try to be specific in academic writing. A concise yet short answer would be enough as compared to a long-winded answer.

I hope my self-made guide about “how to study smart, not hard” will really help you. Comment if you like it.

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Are you about to enroll yourself in the masters in English program? Read this.

Are you about to enroll yourself in the masters in English program? Read this.

source: https://www.skmvdbb.catholic.edu.au/teaching-learning/english/

Masters means a graduate degree program which takes two years to complete and is always managed by the department of Humanities or Social Sciences. And if you have decided to opt for Masters in English. It means you are going to read the literature which is written in English, English as a second language, Linguistics, History of English language and maybe the guideline to teach English to those students who are learning it as a second language.

There are so many professions that you may join after accomplishing this program. You may become a teacher or a writer or may start your own business and the list goes on. Someone asked me which job I may get after reading the plays written by Shakespeare. The answer is Masters in English program polishes your personality for so many professions. As it nourishes your way of thinking critically, improves your all four skills e.g. reading, writing, listening and speaking. English literature makes you broad minded.

Also, reading is the best therapy for your soul and brain. When you attend six classes a day for five days of a week. And in every class, you read and learn something different, it effects your brain in a positive way. Approximately, you will read thirty pieces of writing in a month. Which is, off course, a lot of reading.

In this two-year program, while reading literature, you will read the famous poets, dramatists, novelists, essayists, satirical writers, prose writers and many more. Some of them are Chaucer, John Donne, John Milton, Shakespeare (off course), Sophocles, Marlowe, Austen, Dickens, Eliot, Bacon, Jonathan Swift, Aristotle, Ibsen, James Joyce, Hardy etc. There are so many I can’t make a whole list here.

Most of the universities offer a four years program which includes both bachelors and masters program and you are awarded with the degree of BS. But if you have separately acquired the degree of Bachelors, you will go for two-years Masters program.

If you are a bibliophile as well as librocubicultarist (a person who loves to read in bed), you not only love to read books but also like their smell. Also, you love classic writings. Already own so many books and just can’t get enough of them. Ma English is a right choice for you. As It will give you a lot more to read. Because you are going to start from the Old English period; started around fifth century, when English was so different that it is impossible to read today. But don’t worry you will read the translated modern version of old writings.

Let’s do a reality check round of questions.

Do I need to be a master at English from the start?

No, you shall have enough knowledge of the English language that may enable you to read and understand what is written (in English off-course). It is sufficient as writing and speaking skills are taught from the very start of this program.

Level, Hard? Harder? Hardest?

Well, if you ask me on the scale from 1 to 10, what is the level of difficulty? I would say it depends upon you. If you are passionate about it and are willing to give your time, it is not that hard. Obviously, I am not saying that it is a piece of cake. But, it demands smart work not hard work.

Is it too much of a work?

If you are looking for a shortcut; I am sorry there isn’t any. You have enrolled yourself in a program which requires a lot of reading and writing. You cannot delay everything for later. There is always provided a schedule by the university, if you follow it and work accordingly, things are not going to get tough.

Will I have a social life?

I am not going to lie. You will have a social life but limited as compared to the life before getting admission in Ma English program. Why? As I have already said, this program demands your attention plus time. If you work responsibly and get things done in time, you can have more time to spend with friends and family. Speaking of my personal experience, I admit I was not able to attend community gatherings, or some of social meetings. But, I was able to make time for my friends and family, which is enough I guess. And, I made some of my best friends during this degree program.

If you think I have missed something that should be there in this post, comment below.

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Beware of Energy Vampires...........!!

Beware of energy vampires……….!!!

Are you feeling unworthy, stupid, unloved, offended, fearful, depressed, angry, depleted and even sick? I think you have let an energy vampire suck and drain your energy again. You must be thinking what this term is and who is an energy vampire. Okay let me tell you.

In your life, you meet so many people on the daily basis. There are some people who always light up your world, you feel good being around them. Sometimes you just delay some of your important work just to have some quality time with this kind of people. And when you walk away from them you always feel good.

Then there comes another type. This type of people is always making you feel bad in some or other way. Every time you meet them, you just feel like they are sucking your energy as if your phone’s charges drains all the energy from your power bank. You feel exhausted when the meeting is over with them. They act in the same way the vampires do. Vampires suck your blood and make you feel exhausted. In the same way, energy vampires exhaust you.

Energy vampires are immature people, who think they are self-important. They like themselves so much that they think; the whole world revolves around them. They are attention seekers and their slogans always are like “Me First”.

I would not list their types, but I will list their dialogues that they often speak.

“It is your fault; I don’t make mistakes”.

“You must be ashamed of yourself”.

“Oh, you achieved your goal? So, what’s the big deal in it?”

“You cannot do anything for me, I always feel insecure imagining my life with you”.

“I am so worried, and you don’t even care. How am I gonna live, if you won't help me? "

“You don’t deserve me”.

“I am the Mister/ Miss know-it-all”.

I guess you are thinking about all the energy vampires right now that you have encountered in your life. Right?

You can always let the people go, you can tell them simply to mend their business, to stay out of your life. If you cannot do this, there is always an easy way. Take your positivity to that level, where these types of comment may not bother you.

Sometimes, it is hard to get away from them.

Now you must be thinking, how to fight these energy vampires if they are my loved ones?

What if your loved ones are draining your energy?

How?

Okay, maybe it’s your relative auntie, who is always making you feel unworthy.

Maybe it is your sister who always uses your shoulder to shed the tears over her situation, but never ever does something practical to stand up against difficulties in her life.

Maybe it’s your step mother always telling you “you cannot do anything good in your life”.

Maybe it’s the girl/ boy, your future life partner, always telling you that you are lucky to have her/ him, but you did not deserve him/her.

So, you cannot dump these people out of your life. You cannot abandon them. Then follow these easy steps.

But first let me tell you I have also faced this situation. Yeah, I was so courteous and considerate that I let people drain my energy. I considered myself as a great person who always gives time to everyone, listens to them, I spent a lot of time worrying about them when even they were not interested in improving their situation.

Yeah, I was that foolish, that I worried about everyone’s problems that they were able to solve by themselves, I spent so many days not being productive in my life but for others, ended up having migraines daily just because of the stress that has nothing to do with my life. But everything must meet an end. Finally, I understood what was important in my life and what are those people who are epitome of energy for me.

Coming back to the point again, how to fight energy vampires?

Be positive

As I have already said, take your positivity to the possible higher level. Where you can feel energy vampires being over dramatic, you may listen to them yelling at you but let your positivity guard you in such a way that they can’t cut into you viscerally.

Set up boundaries

Yeah, don’t feel bad for pathetic people who cannot do anything for themselves. One must stand up for himself first. You don’t need to take someone else’s headache if he/ she is not interested by him/ herself.

Protect your vibrations

If you have a positive approach toward life, you will have a high frequency vibration, if you are being negative, you will have lower and denser frequency. There is a famous phrase “like attracts like”. Which means if you have lower frequency, you will attract those people who possess the same vibration. It is called the law of attraction. If you have high frequency vibration, you will attract more positive people.

How to have a high frequency vibration?

Firstly, do not leave yourself alone. By this I don’t mean to always have your house crowded. I mean that spend some quality time with yourself. Try to meditate, as you don’t have an idea what is going on in your head.

Secondly, make a list of those things in your mind that you are grateful for today. These things must include yourself, from your head to toe. Do you know eye transplant costs more than 27,000 dollars? Do you know heart transplant costs more than 400,000 dollars? I am not scaring you, I am trying to say that you have a perfect body and had it for years free of cost. Have you ever taken a moment out of your life to be grateful for what you own?

Thirdly, take a moment and appreciate beauty that exists in this world. There is beauty everywhere that only a single glance at it may fill you with positive energy.

Devine white light is always there to help you.

White color is a house for positivity in the world. It surrounds you and is the prominent color in your aura. White color reveals all the other colors that are present in this world. Imagine yourself wrapped in a white light and be positive. The good news is this light is available to all. This light does not discriminate between religions, sects or nationalities.

You can have it to protect you and you don’t need to beg for it. Because you have it in yourself. Always visualize yourself surrounded by this white light before you start your day, before you meet energy vampires and you will see how it protects you.

I hope this post will help you in a positive way. Leave comments if you like it.

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